Month: November 2008

Let’s be clear about the nature and meaning of the mandate we’re going to be hearing so much about: President-elect Barack Obama has a clear mandate to end the Iraq war as expeditiously as possible. His campaign was energized by and differentiated from Hillary Clinton’s by his emphasis on correcting that horrific mistake. Hillary equivocated, … Continue reading “A Mandate to End the War”

President Bush has often stated that history will be the rightful judge of his legacy. Some academics, such as John Lewis Gaddis and Fareed Zakaria, have already begun early revisions of the Bush years. But as historians mark the final score, they must not omit a serious examination of the administration’s policies in Somalia, the … Continue reading “Somalia: The Third Front Revisited”

The 9/11 attacks and the ensuing "war on terror" have provided an opportunity for the U.S. foreign policy establishment, suffering from Enemy Deprivation Syndrome since the Cold War’s end, to settle on a potential new bogeyman. It is radical Islam, or the "Green Peril" – a term I used in an article 15 years ago … Continue reading “Islam and the West:
The Myth of the Green Peril”

Updated at 2:53 p.m. EST, Nov. 4, 2008A spate of bombings greeted Baghdadis today as U.S. soldiers there await results in the U.S. presidential election. Overall, at least 36 Iraqis were killed and another 69 were wounded across the country, but the lion’s share of injuries was reported in the capital. No Coalition deaths were … Continue reading “Tuesday: 36 Iraqis Killed, 69 Wounded”

KABUL – Western officials are increasingly turning to new strategies in an effort to stabilize Afghanistan and defeat the insurgency here, according to U.S. and Afghan officials. The various initiatives – from negotiating with the Taliban to arming tribal militias – have differing degrees of support from Afghans. Violence has reached record levels this year, … Continue reading “Worsening Situation in Afghanistan Spurring New Strategies”

In any credible court system, the eve-of-election conviction of an associate of Osama bin Laden for producing promotional material for al-Qaeda, which directly encouraged impressionable young men to join a violent jihad against the United States, would be a resounding victory for the Bush administration. It would stand, however belatedly, as a last-minute acknowledgment that … Continue reading “Life Sentence Fails to Justify Gitmo Trials”

In a world where a person like Barack Hussein Obama can appear from nowhere and advance within a few years to the highest levels of world politics, nothing is predictable, and therefore everything is possible. Today, it seems at the moment, the incredible will happen: the most important "white" country in the world will elect … Continue reading “Turning the Page”

The grip that the Israeli lobby has over both political parties means that any real shift in U.S. Middle Eastern policy is unlikely, whoever is elected president today. It might also be argued that no change in policy outside the Middle East is likely either, except that Obama might talk before he bombs. Given Joe … Continue reading “Obama’s Neocon in Residence”

Updated at 11:27 p.m. EST, Nov. 3, 2008At least 23 Iraqis were killed and 58 more were wounded during a spate of attacks in Baghdad and elsewhere. One U.S. soldier died at Qayyarah AFB from non-combat related injuries. In Parliament, A measure insuring minority participation in provincial councils was passed; however, several lawmakers complained that … Continue reading “Monday: 1 US Soldier, 23 Iraqis Killed; 58 Iraqis Wounded”

With the 2008 presidential campaign at its end, pundits have begun to discuss in earnest what expected winner Barack Obama’s administration might look like. An important piece of evidence is Obama’s campaign team, which largely escaped the harsh scrutiny that his opponent’s lobbyist-laden team received. Because of Obama’s relative inexperience on foreign policy, it is … Continue reading “Top Obama Adviser Has Long Ties to Neocons”